The Dark Corners

Posted on 25 Sep 2023 @ 11:57am by Commander Morgan Tarin & Lieutenant JG Sofie Ullswater
Edited on on 25 Sep 2023 @ 3:53pm

2,274 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Episode 18 - Cold Station 31
Location: Regula I - Level 16, Senior Office Module
Timeline: MD 17, 1630 hrs

[ON]

The stacks of administrative PADDs on Tarin's desk had become smaller and smaller throughout the past two days while she worked diligently to process the latest repair logs, logistics resupply manifests and personnel transfers. The art of administering an entire starship - even a small Nova-class - involved much more hands-on management than she'd ever been accustomed to, and while she was slightly behind in her work list, she was quickly adapting to her new function.

Tarin pulled a PADD from one of her alternate stacks which contained several candidates for Galileo's vacant chief science officer position. Three of the four people were still in transit to Regula I with the closest a mere two months out, but the fourth one...perhaps there was a more prudent opportunity. She wasted little time and pressed the commbadge on her chest. "Tarin to Ullswater. Report to my office. Level 16."

Out in Regula I's cold extremities where the isolation labs lie Ensign Ullswater paused her note taking, the gentle hum of the labs interrupted by the captain's summons. "Yes sir," she responded and then doing a quick mental calculation to account for the the required care in leaving this lab without any passengers, "Twelve minutes sir."

Twelve minutes later, Level 16, the door chime, the Enter and Ensign Ullswater was standing at attention face to face with Captain Tarin in her office. "Sorry for the delay sir, isolation procedures." Ullswater wasn't sure what to expect from this encounter with the captain but whatever else the woman wanted she would expect professionalism, so that would be her aim.

The red-collared commander looked up from her desk to the familiar face of Ullswater, Galileo's senior-most science officer. She held her grey eyes as she approached then gestured to the chair in front of her administrative table. "Thank you for coming, ensign. How are you holding up from your recent trials?"

In a graceful movement Ullswater took the seat across from her new captain "I'm doing as well as can be expected given the circumstances." It wasn't much of a statement and she didn't want to come across as terse so she appended with "It will take time."

"I imagine it will. Unfortunately, time isn't a luxury we have out here." Tarin's voice was its normal dry tonality yet it conveyed a subtle sense of urgency. She looked down at her PADD before elaborating, "It's probably no secret by now that Starfleet's lacking sufficient assets in this sector to complete its full objectives. Both in terms of starships and personnel."

Ullswater sat there pondering for a moment, the captain's hazel eyes looking expectantly at her as she tried to work out what this was about "If this is because you are worried I intend to resign, then let me reassure you that I'm sticking with you, sir." She'd considered it, of course, any sane person would after everything that had happened.

Tarin subtly shuddered when the word 'resign' was mentioned. Thoughts of Lieutenant Karras' recent resignation attempt from Galileo and her carefully-navigated denial brought back memories she didn't want to create any more of. When Ullswater clarified her intentions to stay, however, the senior commander felt a private wave of relief. "Good," she exhaled a light breath. "Losing your expertise and experience would be a great detriment to the crew." As far as Tarin's occasional compliments compared to each other, it was a big one.

The red-collared woman continued her thoughts, occasionally glancing down at her PADD. "In fact, I brought you here to ask more of you. Galileo needs a new science department head and you're the senior-most officer. I know you're only a year out of the Academy but there's no better opportunity to reach your potential than out here in the field." She leaned back in her chair and lightly clasped her hands together at her waist. "I'm offering you the position of chief science officer with a promotion to lieutenant junior grade."

"Oh." the science officer's exclamation was quiet and directed mostly to herself. This wasn't an idea she had been preparing herself for. She had to take a moment to collect herself, think out the right response. None of it felt particularly real. Not much did.

Her mind wandered for a moment back to their conversation by the duckpond, perhaps, despite it all, she had Tarin's respect. "Thank you sir," her words were deliberate, laid one after another like bricks in an orderly wall "For both the offer and the confidence in me that it implies. I would be happy to take on the responsibility."

A subtle nod was Tarin's acknowledgement to the young ensign for her acceptance of service. "This won't be an easy job. You'll be administering and overseeing not only your own work standards, but also those of everyone else in your department...which is the largest aboard Galileo. Are you confident you're up to the task?"

Again Ullswater paused, visibly in the process of considering her response. She was telling herself that if the captain thought she was up to the task then surely she was, no matter what doubts were lingering. After a moment her eyes flicked up and met the captain's once again "Would you permit me a brief tangent, an observation about our mission out here?"

"Go ahead," Tarin opened a palm to indicate for the science officer to proceed with whatever was on her mind.

"Since we arrived back at the station I've been monitoring the dangerous bitrium quasicrystals that I identified when Galileo was first at the station," she called back to the first time the two of them had met, and offered an unpleasant reminder of the lethal dangers contained within Regula I's isolation labs. "Its given me a lot of time to think and a lot of time to ask questions. Crystallographic questions don't end in the lab. We always want to know origins, where things came from, if we want to tell the whole story and uncover the whole truth." With a slight smirk she continued "But of course these things are secret, security concerns winning out once again."

The science officer held up a finger, pointing from an odd angle at some invisible point in space, as if to pluck out the phrase she had just uttered from the very air. "Once again." She repeated, her eyes fixing on that invisible point, as if Tarin had been completely forgotten "Alongside Latari and the cold station..." After a moment her eyes snapped back to Tarin's and her focus was concrete once again. "This area of space is the dark corner in the cupboard where we, as well as, it seems, the Ferengi and Klingons, hide our secrets. Security concerns dictate that those corners remain in darkness. Therefore our duty as science officers becomes not just to seek the truth but to protect it. All the data our Starship collects will pass under our noses, all of those dark corners are seen by us. We are both explorers and secret keepers." She gave a slight tilt to her head as a way of asking if the captain followed so far.

As the ensign spoke, Tarin suppressed a private smile. She knew the young woman was sharp which is why she'd recruited her for this new position in the first place, but more importantly, Ullswater was demonstrating greater traits: those of an observer. The nuances of Federation and Starfleet policy were often lost on the majority of the crew, sometimes even her first officer. The blue-collared woman sitting in front of her, however, seemed to be able to identify this complex nature of Regula I and Galileo current assignments. As well as the perils.

"I'm inclined to agree," responded the commander.

"So am I confident that I am up to the task?" Ullswater lowered her finger that had been awkwardly hanging there in space "If I'm going to be seeing and analysing all these secrets then you need to be able to trust me. You'd need to put your trust in an officer who only a few days ago led an armed attack on your brig after being exposed to our dark corners." She shrugged, a small sad shrug that communicated an immensity of regret "Seems like a tall order, I might not trust me with such a sensitive position, but," she leaned forwards a bit, her voice lowering like there was something conspiratorial about what she had to say "You say jump and I'll jump, roll over, fetch, whatever it is you need. I am confident that I can be your science officer."

Sofie shook her head with a soft smile "Because I trust you, sir. And if you can't find anything else in me that you can trust then land back on that, I trust you and that will continue to be true."

Tarin remained quiet for a long moment while looking into the ensign's gray irises. She let out a soft breath then folded her arms across her chest while leaning back in her chair. "I respect your candor and I hope I'll earn more of it in the coming months." Then she tilted her head slightly to the side before addressing the elephant in the room. "There's nothing about you I believe would compromise our mission here. Ullswater...you weren't yourself when you and Darius acted on your thoughts from the cold station. Both of you were compromised. You weren't the Sofie I've come to know and we wouldn't be sitting here having this conversation if I thought otherwise," she added in a quiet tone, using the woman's first name in a rare gesture of consolidation. "You've told me you can do this job, so I'll reciprocate your trust."

She's wrong, that was all you. She's making a horrible mistake. Sofie pushed the thought down but it abided there, coiled in her stomach, a writhing mass of self hatred "That you sir. That means a lot." Her face didn't betray any of it, that same controlled tone masking the tumult that lurked underneath. She kept them distant, everything at arm's length.

Reaching down below her desk, Tarin retrieved a small wooden box which resembled a jewelry case. She placed it on the desk then slid it forward to Ullswater before opening it. Inside were two small rank pips, one solid gold alongside another hollowed-black one with gold trim. "I can't have an ensign serve as a department head," she explained. "Stand to attention."

The counsellor has called it derealisation, stupid name, that's how he'd described this feeling she'd been having so much recently that the world was just moving along without her. It can feel distant, like she was in another room just watching things happen and things that should matter seemed not to. As she stood there to attention she was irked, this should be a profound moment, something to be proud of. But instead it didn't even feel real, just another scene in which she was playing her role.

The captain stood from her chair then walked around the desk and retrieved the small box. She faced Ullswater, standing almost a full head taller than the petite woman, and reached to the science officer's blue collar where her fingers delicately removed the small rank insignia. She placed it in her pocket then retrieved the two new pips and pinned them in place of the old one with a soft tug on the fabric for good measure. "I hereby promote you to the rank of lieutenant junior grade with all the rights and privileges therein. You're also assigned - effective immediately - as chief science officer aboard USS Galileo." Tarin presented a small smile then extended her hand for the new department head to shake. "Congratulations, Mister Ullswater."

Sofie took her hand, it felt like her arm had had to traverse a million miles to get there. "Thank you, sir." The warm smile, the excited handshake, a little tilt of her head, glancing down at the direction of her collar: they were all practiced, all deliberate. Every word of the conversation placed down with the same precision that she employed in all aspects of her work. It was Sofie at her most Sofie and it was all contributing to the feeling of unreality. "I look forward to leading the department."

"And I look forward to your contributions," replied Tarin. "If, along the way, you need any assistance acclimating to your new role, my door's always open." It was a genuine offer to the new young science chief, one Morgan slightly regretted not taking full advantage of when she'd been afforded the same while rising through the ranks. "Any questions?"

"That's very kind of you, sir. I'm sure I'll be taking you up on that offer as soon as I do think of any of questions that I'm currently too stunned to ask." An awkward laugh, scratch the back of the head, shift your weight from one foot to the other: It's all in the playbook, and then with that grateful smile "I really appreciate what you are doing for me."

Tarin replied with a simple nod of acknowledgement then clasped her hands back behind her waist. "You know where to find me. Dismissed, lieutenant."

"Captain." A nod of acknowledgment and then Sofie turned to leave, there was work to be done.

[OFF]

--

CMDR Morgan Tarin
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo-A

LTJG Sofie Ullswater
Chief Science Officer
USS Galileo-A

RSS Feed